


Cupcakes and Cocktails

by Curtashiism



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Baking, Character Study, Food, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:33:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29276250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Curtashiism/pseuds/Curtashiism
Summary: For Hunk, food is versatile. It's a metaphor for everything but itself. It can mean nurturing, it can mean diplomacy... or it can mean love.
Relationships: Hunk/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 7
Collections: Chocolate Box - Round 6





	Cupcakes and Cocktails

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ThatScottishShipper](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatScottishShipper/gifts).



> Happy Chocolate Box, ThatScottishShipper!

Food means so many things for Hunk.

It can mean diplomacy, like it did earlier today on the Atlas, when his carefully-prepared multi-planetary combinations had awed and delighted the ambassadors from the Dol system.

It can mean bonding with family and friends. It means sitting with the people he loves most, learning about each other through food. What are their favorite recipes? Their favorite flavors? What’s their culture like, their traditional foods?

It can mean nurturing. Food is life, food is affection, and food is caring. Cooking was how his parents always showed their care for him, and now it’s how he does it for others. It’s how he cheers his friends up after a bad day. It was how he kept the Paladins’ morale up when they were on the Castle of Lions, and later, how he kept up the entire Atlas crews’ morale.

Food can mean art, too. It’s how he can show his creativity. Like a painter, he can show his versatility, making traditional dishes that are like Gothic art or bizarre creations that are like Picasso’s art in their simultaneous strangeness and breathtaking beauty.

Food can be so many things besides itself. To Hunk, there’s always another meaning to a meal, even to greasy takeout eaten late at night on a dark living room sofa. There’s always a deeper emotion to it.

That’s how he thinks of the tray of cupcakes in the oven. He’d dyed the batter a deep, dark purple color, as close as possible to Shiro’s favorite color. The frosting had been where his real work showed, mixing dyes in such a way that the frosting followed a gradient, from the deepest purple to the palest lilac. And to complement them, he had brought some alcohols and juices ready to make cocktails. As Shiro sits on his breakfast bar Hunk smiles and pours them out in his fancy glasses, combining the ice with vodka and two garishly colored alien alcohols, one blue and one red. It produces a slightly sweet cocktail without a strong alcohol burn, making them perfect to wash down a dessert like cupcakes. Smiling, Hunk hands Shiro a glass and a still-warm cupcake.

“Wow, Hunk… this is amazing.” Shiro laughs, taking a bite. “I’m lucky I have you as a friend; no one in the universe can make things like this.”

Hunk smiles and takes a sip of his own cocktail, savoring the slightly sweet taste. “I’m happy to have you, too, Shiro.” But then he takes a deep breath, nervous.

Because there’s another use for food that he’s invoking. Food is a way to ease tensions. It can make bad news more bearable, can distract from awkward situations. Like the awkward situation that will occur if Shiro rejects him.

“I need to ask you something,” he finally says, looking Shiro in the eyes. “I… When we were fighting, you were always so kind and strong and steady and…” He rubs the back of his neck. “It’s kind of impossible not to feel things for you. Things that go way deeper than friendship. You know?” He looks down at his hands. “I know I’m not attractive like the others, I’m fat and-”

That’s when Shiro speaks up, setting a hand over Hunk’s. “Hunk, no. You’re _perfect_ as you are,” he whispers. “I think you’re beautiful, inside and out. Of all the Paladins, you’re the kindest. Your heart is so big, you’re caring and gentle and…” He goes quiet for a moment. “And I love your face, I love how you look when you smile, and I think your size is a plus, not a downside. You’re perfect, Hunk, and… I wish I knew you felt this way earlier.” He leans forward, presses a small, chaste kiss to Hunk’s lips.

Hunk kisses back, snugging close to Shiro. He doesn’t even know what to say, so overwhelmed that Shiro feels the same, that this is real, that he’s really kissing _Shiro_.

So he picks up another cupcake and hands it to Shiro, because that’s one last meaning food has for him. It means love, it means happiness, it means bonding and companionship. It means closeness and fondness.

Shiro seems to know this, too, smiling as he takes one bite and then offers a bite to Hunk. The sugary flavor and with their tender emotions make a combination Hunk savors. Food tastes even better when accompanying a celebration and this is no different. They alternate between kissing and enjoying their sweet treats, and Hunk couldn’t be happier.


End file.
